Sunday, September 17, 2017

At the June 2017 AASG Annual Meeting, Steve Masterman,
Alaska State Geologist, was elected AASG President. Prior to his Alaska state government service, Steve worked extensively in the
mineral industry, including work in Alaska, Peru and Nevada.He earned a
bachelor’s degree in mining geology from the Royal School of Mines, and a
master’s degree in geological engineering from the University of Alaska
Fairbanks. Also elected were Past-President
David Spears of Virginia, President-Elect Karen Berry of Colorado, Vice
President Richard Ortt of Maryland, Secretary John Metesh of Montana, and Treasurer
Harvey Thorleifson of Minnesota

Phil Pearthree is the new State Geologist of Arizona. According
to the Arizona Geology blog, “AZGS has a new director and Arizona a new State
Geologist. University of Arizona Dean of Science, Dr. Joaquin Ruiz, confirmed
that Phil Pearthree, Ph.D., is the new director of the Arizona Geological
Survey. As part of his duties, Dr. Pearthree assumes the role of Arizona State
Geologist. Phil follows former State Geologist Lee Allison who died tragically
in a fall in Aug. 2016. Phil received his B.S. at Oberlin College, and M.S. and
Ph.D. at the University of Arizona. He joined AZGS in 1988 and was chief of the
Environmental Geology section for more than a decade. As an AZGS research
geologist, Phil has authored or co-authored more than 100 geologic reports and
maps over the past 29 years. In 2013, Phil and two co-authors received the prestigious
Kirk Bryan Award from the Geological Society of America’s Quaternary Geology
and Geomorphology Division for their report, 'Stratigraphic evidence for the
role of lake-spillover in the inception of the lower Colorado River in southern
Nevada and western Arizona'.”

Rolfe David Mandel has been named Director of the Kansas
Geological Survey. According to the KU web site, “Mandel's published works span
a wide range of topics including paleopedology, late-Quaternary landscape
evolution, isotope geochemistry, and paleoenvironmental reconstruction. He has spent
over 30 years working with archaeologists on projects throughout the United
States and eastern Mediterranean, focusing on the effects of geologic processes
on the archaeological record. During the past 10 years much of his research has
involved the use of geoscientific methods to search for the earliest evidence
of humans in the Central Great Plains and Midwest. Dr. Mandel founded and
chaired the Society for American Archaeology's Geoarchaeology Interest Group
(1997-2001), served as Chair of the Geological Society of America's
Archaeological Geology Division (1997-1998), and was President of the American
Quaternary Association (2009-2010). In 2012 he was appointed Chair of the U.S.
National Committee for Quaternary Research/INQUA. Presently he is an Associate
Editor for Current Research in the Pleistocene, Geoarchaeology: An
International Journal, and the Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology. He has received
many awards and distinctions, including Fellow of the Geological Society of
America, the 2011 University of Kansas (KU) Center for Teaching Excellence
Award, the KU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences 2009 John C. Wright Graduate
Mentor Award, and the 2012 Kansas Board of Regents' Haguchi/Irvin E. Youngberg
Research Achievement Award. The Geological Society of America recognized his
achievements with two prestigious awards: the George Rapp Award for outstanding
contributions to the interdisciplinary field of archaeological geology, and the
2010 Kirk Bryan Award for Excellence.”

Survey. Groat returns to LSU after many years in academia,
government, independent research, and administrative positions. Groat’s prior
tenure at LSU includes serving as the LGS director and state geologist
(1978-1990) and as the executive director for Coastal, Energy, and
Environmental Resources (1992-1995). He will work as acting LGS director with
CES Executive Director David E. Dismukes to explore new research and growth
opportunities for LGS and for LSU’s overall energy, coastal and environmental
research initiatives. Groat is a nationally renowned educator and government
scientist. Most recently, he retired as president and CEO from the Water
Institute of the Gulf. He was professor and director of the Center for
International Energy and Environmental Policy and associate director of the
Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin. He was also director of
the U.S. Geological Survey under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.

Nelia W. Dunbar has been named New Mexico State Geologist.
According to her web site, “As director of the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and
Mineral Resources, I am responsible for overseeing the research and service
activities of the state geological survey. I work closely with many of the
staff to keep current on their activities, and to provide advice when needed. I
report to the president of New Mexico Tech, who I keep informed about bureau
activities and events. I represent the bureau at the state legislature, to
other state agencies, and at national meetings. I serve as the New Mexico
representative to the American Association of State Geologists organization. My
scientific background is in geochemistry, mainly in the study of volcanic
rocks, and I received funding for, and previously directed the electron
microprobe laboratory, where I now act as advisor. I am an adjunct faculty
member in the Earth and Environmental Science department at New Mexico Tech,
where I have taught classes and advised graduate students.”